Theoretical aspects regarding the selection of personal protective equipment intended for use in Ex., environments in order to avoid the danger of initiating explosive atmospheres generated by hydrogen

¹ National Research and Development Institute for Mining Safety and Explosion Protection – INSEMEX, G-ral Vasile Milea Street, no. 32-34, Postal code: 332047, Petroșani, Hunedoara County, Romania
² University of Petroșani, 20 Universității, Petroșani, România

^* Corresponding author: florin.paun@insemex.ro

Abstract

Personal protective equipment used by workers to protect them against one or more risks that could endanger their safety and health at work can acquire electrostatic charges as a result of the friction phenomenon that occurs during movements during work tasks, respectively the induction phenomenon, a situation in which the transfer of electrostatic charges occurs from highly electrostatically charged objects such as, for example, a FIBC into which a powdery material is poured. In the case of using personal protective equipment in environments with a risk of potentially explosive atmospheres and under the conditions mentioned above, they may constitute a risk, namely that of initiating potentially explosive atmospheres through electrostatic discharges that occur when dangerous electrostatic potentials accumulate. Personal protective equipment intended for use in explosive atmospheres must be designed and manufactured in such a way that it cannot be the source of an electric or electrostatic arc or spark which could ignite a potentially explosive atmosphere. To ensure the highest possible level of occupational health and safety, an important role is played by the selection of personal protective equipment intended for use in environments with a potentially explosive atmosphere, depending on the risk factors and the classification of hazardous areas Ex.